Aligning Top Buyers with Your Quality Grain

Buyers in more than two dozen countries — and the U.S., too — choose Montana wheat and barley for their qualities not found anywhere else in the world (jump here for more on that topic). We know how proud you are of the grain you raise. Montana Wheat & Barley Committee uses your checkoff dollars to help get hard red spring, hard red winter and durum wheats; malt barley; and feed barley onto someone’s table, into a frosty glass or in front of a critter. All in the name of feeding the world. 

This page covers how we make that happen.

How your checkoff dollars are spent:

The 2024 budget was approved Nov. 27, 2023 by the Wheat & Barley Committee board. Almost half of producer dollars are dedicated to research, largely conducted by Montana State University faculty and grad students. Calls for research grants occur in the fall and are awarded the subsequent year.

Market development is 27% of the budget, investing time and resources into hosting trade teams from South America to the Pacific Rim. MWBC also travels to see buyers and meet prospects, working closely with US Wheat and US Grains on most of these opportunity visits.

Operations and education outreach make up the remainder of the budget.

We directly fund scientific research that improves quality, production, and best farm practices. 

We establish and cultivate trade relationships as well as explore new markets. We present to over 1,000 potential buyers each year. 

We employ four staff members dedicated to pursuing our goal and carrying out our mission. 

We support organizations that further the overall knowledge of Montana agriculture. 

Research


The 2024 MWBC budget will appropriate $2.25 million toward research projects. This funding is awarded during the fall budget cycle with the majority of projects residing at Montana State University's College of Agriculture. Twenty-one faculty were awarded on topics from wheat stem sawfly to blight resistance in durum to winter barley research. Click the Research icon to land on the research page featuring grant awards, research history, a blog from featured researchers and more.

Market Development


In 2023, Montana Wheat & Barley Committee hosted 16 trade teams from Taiwan to South Korea to Japan. Because of our intimate connections with partners such as US Wheat and US Grains, we have a full-time presence in 25 overseas offices to represent the Montana grain industry.

For 2024, $1.29 million will be reserved for market development efforts. About 80 percent of the market development budget is provided to US Wheat, US Grains, Wheat Foods Council, Northern Crops Institute and the Wheat Marketing Center for operations support. These crucial partners are continuously seeking new buyers, discovering changes in end-use criteria needed for variety improvement, strengthening existing buyer relationships and gathering data to help us make more informed decisions. One of those important expenditures is hosting trade teams. Click the icon for more market information.

Education


So many times in conversation, we hear producers say, "We don't talk about what we do well very often." That's not a shock -- everyone is busy trying to carve out a living. MWBC devotes a good amount of time helping tell the wheat and barley story. In 2024, MWBC will invest nearly $270,000 on educational programs such as REAL Montana, US Durum Growers outreach, FFA and much more. Discover resources for teachers, wheat nutrition, popular links like Montana's brewery map, and so much more when you click on the Education icon.

There is much room to grow here! We encourage ideas from producers where we can educate more consumers about wheat and barley while providing valuable education about Montana's number-one industry, agriculture.

27%

The amount of total dollars invested specifically to marketing Montana grains around the globe.

13.5B

Montana’s malt barley crop produced 13.5 billion cans of brew in 2020. That’s two Montana-originated barley pops for every human on the planet!

1.25B

In 2023, Montana producers grew $1.247 billion in hard red winter wheat, by far the largest volume grain crop in Montana. Totals:

Hard red spring…$567M

All barley…$248M

Durum…$225M

30%

The amount of wheat and barley receipts out of total farm and ranch gross revenues in Montana. In 2023, Montana farmers raised the tune of $1.58 billion in wheat and barley. Agriculture remains FIRST of all Montana industries, contributing mightily to Montana’s GSP and overall economic health. 

Montana Historical Yield

  • 27,100 Farms
  • 2,137 Acres on Average
  • $4.38 Billion Dollar Industry

No Data Found

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 3024
300 Park Dr. S., Suite 104
Great Falls, MT 59403-3024
Phone: (406) 761-7732
Fax: (406) 761-7851
Email: wbc@mt.gov

The Montana Wheat & Barley Committee promotes local research and develops trade markets around the world.

Office Hours
Monday thru Friday
8am to 5pm
Holidays May Impact Hours

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